As Disciples of Jesus — We Cry, “Increase Our Faith!”

The Twentieth Sunday after Pentecost
October 2, 2016
Luke 17:1-10

Jesus said to his disciples: “Things that cause people to sin are bound to come, but woe to that person through whom they come. It would be better for him to be thrown into the sea with a millstone tied around his neck than for him to cause one of these little ones to sin. So watch yourselves. If your brother sins, rebuke him and if he repents, forgive him. If he sins against you seven times in a day, and seven times comes back to you and says, ‘I repent,’ forgive him.” The apostles said to the Lord, “Increase our faith!” He replied, “If you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mulberry tree, ‘Be uprooted and planted in the sea,’ and it will obey you. Suppose one of you had a servant plowing or looking after the sheep. Would he say to the servant when he comes in from the field, ‘Come along now and sit down to eat’? Would he not rather say, ‘Prepare my supper, get yourself ready and wait on me while I eat and drink; after that you may eat and drink’? Would he thank the servant because he did what he was told to do? So you also, when you have done everything you were told to do, should say, ‘We are unworthy servants; we have only done our duty.’” (NIV1984)

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ,

One of the things that I have grown to both appreciate and admire about the Bible is that this Book is filled with “real” people. What I mean by that is this: whether it’s Moses or Matthew, Aaron or Andrew, Miriam or Mary these are people to whom you and I can easily relate! They all have their good days and they all have their not so good days. They each have their own individual strengths and they each have their own individual weaknesses. Even the great “Heroes of Faith” listed for us in Hebrews chapter 11 — men such as Abraham and David, women such as Sarah and Rahab— are never put on pedestals so high that we have no choice but to say, “I could never be like them.” The people we read about in the Bible are “real” people— people who were no different from you and me.

The portion of Scripture that we have before us this morning gives us yet another example of that reality. As Jesus gets closer and closer to the cross, as both the culmination and the conclusion of Jesus’ ministry here on this earth draws near, the Son of God teaches His disciples truths that “challenge” their faith, truths that require their faith to grow and mature.

Since these same truths “challenge” our faith, since these same truths require our faith to grow and to mature, our sermon theme for today is taken directly from our text. This morning let’s see that: As Disciples of Jesus— We Cry “Increase Our Faith!” There are two things we need to do today. First let’s see what causes Jesus’ disciples to cry out, “Increase our faith!” Then let’s see how our Savior responds to this heartfelt cry for help.

What causes Jesus’ disciples, including us, to cry out, “Increase our faith!”? Jesus answers that question from two different yet intertwined perspectives. The first perspective is found in the opening three verses of our text. Luke writes, “Jesus said to his disciples, ‘Things that cause people to sin are bound to come, but woe to that person through whom they come. It would be better for him to be thrown into the sea with a millstone tied around his neck than for him to cause one of these little ones to sin. So watch yourselves.’”

The Greek word which is translated here as “things that cause people to sin” is the word “skandalon.” This word very literally refers to a “trigger” in a trap. Think of a stick that is used to hold a trap open. Some kind of bait would be placed on that stick to entice an animal into the trap. Once the animal took the bait the trap was sprung and the animal was either caught or killed. Because of the presence of sin in this world and because each and every human being is sinful Jesus says that “skandalon” are “bound to happen.” In other words, it is impossible for us as sinful human beings to completely avoid causing “skandalon.” It is impossible for us as sinful human beings to completely avoid setting a trap that causes someone else to sin. Whether it is the actions of our life or the words that we allow to come out of our mouth or the attitudes that we display, the sin that lives inside of us guarantees that sooner or later, in one way or another we will cause someone else to sin.

Does this mean that we are to simply accept that reality, shrug our shoulders, say “Oh well,” and just move on? God forbid! We need to take to heart Jesus’ warning, “But woe to that person through whom they come. It would be better for him to be thrown into the sea with a millstone tied around his neck than for him to cause one of these little ones to sin. So watch yourselves.”

Since causing someone else to sin is such a serious offense in God’s eyes it brings with it serious consequences from God’s hand. So as disciples of Jesus we need to “watch” ourselves. We need to “pay close attention to” how we live our life, to how we treat other people, to how we talk about other people, to the example that we set— especially for the “little ones.” We don’t want to be the one who teaches little Joey— either by word or by example— that it is not important to go to church and that serving our Lord by serving in His church is a dreary obligation at best. We don’t want to be the one who teaches little Sally— either by word or by example— that it’s okay to complain about people behind their back just as long as you smile and try to be friendly to them when you see them face-to-face. As disciples of Jesus we need to “pay close attention to” the example that we set for others— especially for the “little ones.”

When we take these words of our Savior to heart, is it difficult for us to understand why we join with Jesus’ disciples here in our text and cry out to our Lord, “Increase our faith!”? I don’t think so!

From the perspective of being the one who causes someone else to sin Jesus then moves on to a second perspective. It is a perspective that focuses our attention on someone else who has sinned. It is a perspective that focuses our attention on someone who has sinned against us. Jesus says, “If your brother sins, rebuke him, and if he repents, forgive him. If he sins against you seven times in a day, and seven times comes back to you and says ‘I repent,’ forgive him.”

I have found that “rebuking” someone when they have sinned against God and “forgiving” someone when they have sinned against us are oftentimes the two most difficult things for disciples of Jesus to do. Why? That’s an easy question to answer. Think back to the last time that you had personal firsthand knowledge that a fellow Christian had sinned against God. Did you “rebuke” them? Did you follow the command that Jesus gives to us in Matthew 18 when He says, “go and show him his fault, just between the two of you”? (Matthew 18:15) Or, did you simply stay silent and look the other way because you didn’t want to hear them say something like, “Mind your own business!” or, “Who are you to be telling me that what I am doing is wrong?” or maybe even something like, “Who made you God?”

Now, think of the last time someone sinned against you and then came back and said, “I’m sorry.” Did you automatically remember how much the Son of God willingly suffered as He died on the cross to secure forgiveness for all of the sins that you have committed against Him? (Pointing to the cross) Or, did you withhold forgiveness because their sin “hurt” you “too much”? Did you automatically remember how your dear Lord and Savior graciously invites you to receive His holy Supper to personally assure you that all of your sins are completely forgiven— even though you sin against Him multiple times each and every day? Or, did you refuse to forgive that person because they have sinned against you “too many times”?

How does Jesus respond to this heartfelt cry from His disciples? He responds in two ways. First, look at verse six of our text. Jesus says, “If you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mulberry tree, ‘Be uprooted and planted in the sea,’ and it will obey you.”

As Jesus’ disciples listened to what their Lord was telling them they wanted to do what Jesus had told them to do. But when they looked inside of themselves, they didn’t think that they were up to the task. So what does Jesus do? He turns their focus outward and upward. “Just use the faith the Lord your God has given to you!” Jesus says to His disciples, “That faith is capable of doing far more than you think!” And then, to help His disciples realize just how powerful even a tiny amount of faith is, to help His disciples understand that even the smallest amount of faith empowers them to do amazing things Jesus gives His disciples a picture that they would not easily forget, “If you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mulberry tree, ‘Be uprooted and planted in the sea,’ and it will obey you.”

As disciples of Jesus we are never to look at something Jesus tells us to do and say, “I can’t do that. My faith is just too weak.” In the context of this portion of Scripture that means that when it comes to “paying close attention to” the way that we live our life so that we don’t cause anyone to sin— especially the “little ones,” when it comes to “rebuking” someone who has sinned against God, when it comes to forgiving someone who has sinned against us and then says “I repent,” we can’t say, “Sorry. I can’t do that.” If we have any faith at all— even if it is as tiny as a mustard seed— we can lift up our eyes to the One who has given us that faith, trust that He will be with us to help us and then do what He commands us.

Jesus’ second response to His disciples’ heartfelt request, “Increase our faith!” is found in verses 7-10 of our text. Jesus says, “Suppose one of you had a servant plowing or looking after the sheep. Would he say to the servant when he comes in from the field, ‘Come along now and sit down to eat’? Would he not rather say, ‘Prepare my supper, get yourself ready and wait on me while I eat and drink; after that you may eat and drink’? Would he thank the servant because he did what he was told to do? So you also, when you have done everything you were told to do, should say, ‘We are unworthy servants; we have only done our duty.’”

As disciples of Jesus we need to remember that we are His “servants.” We are “slaves” of the Lord who “bought” us back from the power of sin, death and the devil— not with gold or silver but with His holy precious blood and His innocent suffering and death. (See 1 Peter 1:18, 19) We don’t get to decide which of Jesus’ commands we will obey and which of Jesus’ commands we can simply ignore. We serve Him who first served us. (Pointing to the cross) We give our life to the One who first gave His life for us. (Pointing to the cross). That’s why doing what Jesus commands us to do is a joy and not a burden! He has done so much for us, He has given so much to us— forgiveness of sins, eternal life and salvation— that even if, even if we were to go beyond what Jesus commands us we would still have to humbly confess, “We are unworthy servants.”

“The apostles said to the Lord, ‘Increase our faith!’” This cry reveals to us that Jesus’ apostles were real people. They were no different than you and me. When the Son of God taught them truths that “challenged” their faith, when He taught them truths that required their faith to grow and mature, the apostles realized that on their own they weren’t up to the task. They needed Jesus to help them— and He did!

My prayer this morning, my friends, is that you and I will learn from the example that Jesus’ apostles give to us here in our text. Whenever we are confronted by something in the Bible that “challenges” our faith, whenever a command that our Savior has given to us requires our faith to grow and mature, may God grant that we will listen to our God as He speaks to us through His holy Word, thank our God as He strengthens us through His holy Supper— all the while continually crying out to our God, “Increase our faith!”

To God be the glory!

Amen